The MX-5 Miata of the Monthfrom

June 2004

Brian "CowMan" Chaulk

Congratulations to Brian on the selection
of his Miata as the June Miata of the Month!

My
love affair with the Miata began when I was 16. A bald man in a blue 1st-gen.
lightly tripped through a corner without slowing down atall, as I was walking
home. It struck me in an odd way and it was then that I resolved to get one.

Fast
forward, 19, finished high school. Started working in the late summer. My
place of work was 5-6 km away, which I walked or biked but certainly it seemed
I was not doing so in the snow. I needed car; which now, I could afford.

Upon
seeing an ad for a BRG Miata, low km's, full records, within my price range,
I hopped on the phone; grabbed my buddy Tom, and drove 5 hours to see it.
It was bought on first glance... it didn't seem to matter to me that it was
white in the trunk or under the hood; or how bald the tires were; nore did
I notice the clutch was near gone. I had found *my* Miata.

At the time I was
living in Ontario. So, my parents dropped me off, I paid for her, picked
up some plates, and drove 'er home. I pretty much taught myself how to drive
a manual transmission on that worn clutch over the course of the next three
months.

Since
then, its seen its fair share of use and abuse. Its a 1990 and every idiosyncracy
of the early cars has indeed struck mine - the 65mph shimmy, the 'stuck-in-reverse'
problem, etc. My philosophy with mods: if it breaks, I want the best I can afford
to replace it. After the 2nd clutch burnt out (due to a few people learning
to drive on my car and a fair amount of 'abuse'), in went the ACT Xtreme pressure
plate/organic disc. And when the exhaust started rattling, a Flyin' Miata dual-exhaust
setup w/free-flow cat went on. Or when one of the rear brake calipers siezed,
they were replaced with the larger rear brakes from a 1998 and slotted rotors
with braided-steel lines. Best thing ever done for the Miata though is tires
- Kumho Ecsta whatevers in the summer and Nokia Hakapellita whatevers for the
snow. The shift knob is a Voodoo, o' course (titanium! mmm).

Since purchase years ago, the car has seen, on average,
91-96km/day. A lot of roadtrips, and a bit of craziness. Its been in the
garage so the top can go down on a cold winters morn., driven through the snow
in the worst of conditions, and carried as many as 6 people at a time. I've
slept behind the seats with the top up and carried a bottle or two shy of 17
dozen beer, ladders work well sticking up from the passengers seat, and anything
can be strapped to the rear deck with the top down.

Some
might find this treatment horrendous, I would've before I owned 'er. I do, as
well, fully appreciate the responsiveness and nimbleness of the machine. I have
a hard time driving all those other mushyclutched slushboxes when I cannot be
driving my little ragtop. Dropping the top and hitting up the back-country as
the leaves change, or on a cool springs evening, or even sitting in a black
interior on the hottest day of the year, there is a spiritualistic feeling to
driving a Miata unequalled by anything else short of a Lotus or motorcyle.

Last fall I made
the move from Ontario to Newfoundland to attend university. The trip took
many, many diversions and clocked another 6,000km on the odometer. Despite
the heavily loaded condition of the car (between myself and my passenger Joe,
our combined wieghts exceeded the max. recommendation on the door. :), the
only concern was a couple of tires that wore a bit faster than expected. This
winter is its first winter away since 1993, and I eagerly await the summer
- there are a few road trips already planned. S!

Brian
"CowMan" Chaulk
St. John's, Newfoundland

This one is from a road trip to Kingston. So much snow came under the hood
from the road that my passenger complained their feet where cold, even with
the heat. Shortly before pulling in for gas the alternator light started to
blink on and off - I originally thought it was just the belt slipping, but
when I popped the bonnet to check for oil, the snow was to the hood on the
intake side and was physically stopping the alternator. By the time I had got
the camera, a fair amount of the snow had already been removed.